Hold on Tight - It's 2018!(President's page)

AuthorHowren, Robert L.

As we closed out 2017, there was no shortage of apprehension, uncertainty, and stress around the tax world, as Congress and the White House sought to complete work on far-reaching tax legislation. To be sure, the sausage-grinding exercise that passed for tax reform bore little resemblance to the order and decorum that largely characterized the tax reform process that took place in the mid-1980s, the last time Congress successfully undertook a major overhaul of the Internal Revenue Code. For many--or perhaps even most--of you who might not have been around back then, Dan Rostenkowski (D-Illinois), chair, House Committee on Ways and Means; Senator Robert Packwood (R-Oregon), chair, Senate Finance Committee; and Reagan White House Chief of Staff James Baker, working with numerous legislators and staff members (including more familiar names like Hank Gutman and David Brockway), came together to help enact major tax legislation.

That was then.

The efforts having recently been completed starkly reflect a lack of careful and thorough public consideration of the pros and cons supporting these statutory provisions, thus exposing everyone to the prospect of undiscovered and unintended consequences, as the legislative process shifts from enacting laws to implementing them. The corporate AMT/R&D conflict is but one example--there will be more. And given the vast goodwill that currently exists in Congress, the prospects of a "technical corrections" bill are uncertain at best.

Against this background, TEI waded into the tax reform debate, recognizing that our greatest and unparalleled strength--i.e., the breadth and diversity of our membership--was also our greatest limitation. Because we will never knowingly advocate for one industry position to the detriment of another, frequently we sit out issues, notwithstanding a desire to engage.

Yet, as many of you have observed, we were able to successfully leverage our members' industry experience in two important ways. First, we identified areas in the legislation that will add compliance burdens (e.g., increased FTEs, new and different information and documentation requirements, etc.) to the jobs we do and the departments we serve. And, second, we identified some of the financial statement and reporting impacts that the provisions may have. In short, these are two of TEI's "lanes of expertise" where we can speak--and be heard. Just as important, given the volume of Treasury regulations that will likely be...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT